I've used Airbnb a couple of times. Usually pricing is the attraction though sometimes the places themselves are unique. The negative is that if the place isn't what you expected, you're pretty much stuck with it. A resort condo that faced a wall of snow, not the view. A loft that was mostly a big empty room. Tv that doesn't work. A laundry or dishwasher with no detergent. That sort of thing. If you roll well with the punches, the price is usually good. And the experience is not just another hotel room. One, the owner insisted on my credit card number (which isn't allowed) but I notified Airbnb and they straightened it out. It was a new owner and they weren't clear on all the rules. It can be a bit unnerving looking for a hidden key under a rock at 2am after a long drive (happened). But no real serious problems.

Have used Airbnb quite a few times in Europe, and a couple times in California, and every time was a good experience. Advantage: You pay by credit card, but the apartment owner doesn't get the money until 24 hours after the rental starts, so that if the place does meet up with advertised amenities, you can back out and get your money back. It is important to correspond with or call the host before committing to a rental to clarify anything about the rental that is not absolutely clear. Most have pics of the place - if any area is ommitted, it is probably because it doesn't look as nice. Ask. And get the street address before renting, so that you can check it out on google maps - both for the neighborhood, and for streetview. A pleasant appearing street might be quiet in one block, and turn into a 6-lane noisy boulevard in the next. And read every review of the place from former renters. Unlike some other sites, reviews on Airbnb are totally out of control of the owner, and once they are submitted, cannot be changed. People rent from Airbnb usually because they want the freedom of having an apartment. But in so so doing, you give up the advantages of a hotel - staffing, quiet, fresh daily linens, etc.

I agree with Hiker Skier. Airbnb works. But you must know upfront that you are not renting a hotel room with all of the service that comes with it. Want a 24/7 staffed reception desk, chambermaid service, room service, mini bar, etc., stop using Airbnb. There are plenty of hotels out there.

Price is one issue. Sure, the hotels are businesses. They offer a bunch of services/amenities at a hotel rate.

If price is not your primary concern, you may still want to go Airbnb simply because you do not want to have a procession of staff members checking your minibar, your bathroom, your room. Wanna make your own breakfast or cook your own dinner? Airbnb is a better solution.

I have been wondering about the gay version of Airbnb. It would be cool to hear what the guys with some experience using it have to say.

Was it better than your Aibnb? Anu upsides/downsides beyond the usual Airbnb context?

I hosted through AirBnB this summer. During peak tourist season, there is a shortage of hotel rooms in my area, so there can be quite a bit of demand.

EDIT: Almost forgot, I DID also list on "Mister BnB," (why not? it's free...) but nothing ever came of it.

I met some very interesting people from a surprising variety of countries. I had a few cranky people who showed up in a bad mood and left that way too. A couple of people have come back more than once. A couple of people left early without saying a word. During the season, I made about $500 a week from it. Sometimes, considering the amount of work required, this worked out to minimum wage or less. This was the first weekend I've had to myself in months. I'm ready for a break. I learned a few things. Not sure whether I'll do it next year.

The dogs and cat really, really enjoyed the company.Nobody stole or broke anything or caused a problem maliciously. There were a few accidents and a couple of parties.Many people do not read the descriptions.Nobody reshelves books properly.Each woman = one roll of toilet paper per day.AirBnB wil push you to undercut the hotel rates, but unless you just enjoy performing maid service as a hobby, or your accommodation is pretty minimal, that is stupid. Instead, I tried to provide a few things that the hotels don't. Bicycles, SUPs (bought some inexpensive extra stuff on craigslist) laundry, a decent weight room, quiet, space. AirBnB does not allow you to exchange addresses or phone numbers in advance. These are automatically blanked from your messages until the guest has paid. You can only message through the AirBnB system, but they lose messages all the time. As soon as possible, get a direct contact number or email. Women will try to flush incredible things down the toilet, even if you post signs. I had to snake out the sewer three times. The vast majority of the guests are recently-married 20-something couples who all start to look the same after a while. All of the women are named Jen or Jan or Julee or Jenie something. Post any reviews as soon as they leave, or you will forget which one was which. After you post a glowing review, you will discover that the sewer is plugged with diapers or wads of tampons. Sheets and towels wear out in a hurry when you wash them every day.I had to wear a lot more clothes around the place than I usually would.I had a lot fewer guys over for fun than I usually would.I got to sail my boat a lot less than I had planned.

Well, good grief. It turns out that the guy at the end of my dock is renting out his boat as an AirBnB.

I have done AirBnB in Stockholm, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and Amsterdam, and I've only had good experiences. If you are going to do it, read the reviews, correspond with your host, and if there's a problem, contact AirBnB customer service immediately. A coworker of mine arrived at her host's place in Paris this summer and the place was a mess, nothing like the listing, etc. The problems could not be resolved with the host, so AirBnB paid for a hotel room for my coworker. Don't suffer in silence! And as a precaution, know how to contact that police wherever you are so that a repeat of the Barcelona incident doesn't occur.

We have friends who are hosts here in town as well and they've never had any problems.

I also agree that the Airbnb works if it is less expensive than the neighboring hotels.

On the other hand, you can apparently set a minimum stay, and determine your own pricing, reducing the number of turnovers and weeding out the folks who want everything for nothing or are travelling on a shoestring but want fancy accommodation nonetheless.

Strange enough that no one has had any experience with Mister bnb. You would think that the guy dudes would flock to a gay operated or gay friendly place.

On the other hand, I understand that your sexual orientation does not really matter if you are renting a whole place. Probably more so if you choose to share a place with your host, want to bring someone in, etc.?

I see that if you use "Scruff," you can now list your (presumably gay) AIrBnB, MisterBnB, or VRBO listing right in the app. But only if you live in one of their "Venture Cities" which are very few. If you go to one of the cities and scroll down to the bottom, the listings (if any) are shown.

There is a request form to add new cities, but they will have to create some sort of indexing system it they add many more.

Wait- the FAQ page says that anybody can link their AirBnB listing to their profile, but then, if you're not in one of the "Venture Cities," it's not clear to me how travelers can find it...? It just shows up on your profile.

Dunno - I downloaded the app at some point but never use it, so I'm not too familiar with it. (Basically the same six guys who are on all the other apps...)

D'Oh! I just don't know how to use the app. There are lots of "venture cities" but only a few "featured" ones are shown on the main page. You have to use the search box to find the rest. Not obvious to me.

Still not sure if this is a good idea or not. Do hook-ups have to pay the room rate? Do guys booking in at the normal rate assume that they get a free hook-up? Could be a slippery slope...

Why do I keep getting "woofs" from guys in Australia? Cool, but useless.

My neighbour is a host of airbnb and she keeps her standard very high. She has been a super host for months now because she knows how important it is to keep her place clean. What guests sees on the airbnb website is exactly the same when they walk through the front door (no surprises). You need to read guests reviews on the host to ensure you are staying in a nice clean room.

All these BnBs were supposed to be cheaper alternative to hotels or similar lodging places. But from my experience, if you are a solo traveler, they cost you more or same as what a hotel would cost you. Usually, i find cheaper alternatives to these BnBs. Also, I have seen recently that MisterBnB has started asking for some money as security deposit which you should pay to the owner once you arrive at the place where you're staying. Their cancellation policy isn't very customer friendly either. I have found many hotels with 100% money back policy if you cancel 4-5 days in advance. I think it makes more sense to use one of these BnBs, if you are a group of 3-4 people as you can rent out the whole place for yourself, which makes it cheaper for everyone. Economically, as a solo traveler, it's not the best deal.

As a host - I rent my 1 bed apartment. I use it mainly for when I am travelling and will be away or in high season. It can be a pain to get the apartment ready so I tend to do it for a week or so rather a couple of days. I hire a cleaner to clean it and have to move my clothes out of the wardrobe to my storage cupboard.I think the big cities are more competitive so rental pricing is low during low season.

When travelling I prefer to rent a whole apartment if I use airbnb.It's a bit weird renting a room as you never know if you'll get on with that person. It feels like having a room mate except you are the guest.

I prefer a hotel these days as you get more service but if there is a high end apartment I'll go for that. I stayed in an amazing luxury apartment in Athens, Greece for less than $100 a night. It was owned by an architect and was stunning.

I have used AirB&B twice so fat I was in Barcelona and had a small flat --- 1 Bdroom all to myself in a great part of the city Couldn't have been betterThen I shared a Bdroom in a shared flat in NYC during Pride week The place was nice but I didn't like the sharing of the space with the owners ... they were hospitable but O would have liked having my own place better

Different hosts have different strategies and different offerings. A friend had a house on Main St with a room not much larger than my walk-in closet. He had a competitive rate and lots of visitors drawn by the location. Sounded like a pain to me between washing the sheets, making the bed and being there when people arrive. I have a nicer higher end room for rent in a nicer house in a nicer neighborhood - for a higher price. I don't get the parade of people coming through and am content with that. (Prices are better for weekly and monthly stays which are less hassle/overhead for me.)

I've had 2 guests through MisterBNB and they were mostly similar to AirBNB guests. The first wanted "benefits" (not sure if he expected that coming in or just liked me or was lonely) but I'm not available so he only got a good night hug.

If you want to host via MisterBNB, set-up payment via Paypal. The bank option they use wires you the money and you'll end up with a $20-30 bank fee from your bank to receive the money.

Well, I brushed off the cobwebs and took a look at my "MisterBnB" listing. It seems that the database is all garbled. Among other things, no matter what I type for the address, it comes up listed in the town of "Straight Point," which if it even exists, is nowhere near me. Some of the photos have become cropped to nonsense. No wonder nobody ever booked.

Well, that and... on the "location map," there's a button to bring up "gay map" and it is utterly blank